


Out of Hand

by whitecrossgirl



Category: Game of Thrones (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, F/M, Fake/Pretend Relationship
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-09-01
Updated: 2019-09-01
Packaged: 2020-10-04 17:29:39
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,805
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20474849
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/whitecrossgirl/pseuds/whitecrossgirl
Summary: As the talk turned to Jaime's marriage; Jaime panics and claims that he and Brienne are engaged. Except they're not. And now everyone thinks that they are and that they will get married in a few weeks. This was only going to end one way; Brienne was going to kill him.





	Out of Hand

“I’ve already promised myself to someone.”

Jaime had blurted out the lie before he could stop himself. The effect it had on his family was instantaneous. Tywin had flickered an eyebrow in surprise (the equivalent of any other person having their jaw on the floor), Cersei looked stunned by his announcement and Tyrion looked simply bemused, eager to watch the scene unfold. Tywin had originally summoned the three of them to discuss marriages which had meant scolding Tyrion for not yet consummating his marriage to Sansa Stark, scolding Cersei for her attitude towards her betrothal to Loras Tyrell and informing Jaime that he was sourcing a bride for him. The ideal would be one of Walder Frey’s numerous daughters and granddaughters or some daughter from one of their vassal houses.

It was the entirety of all of the changes that he would be facing since his return to the capital; being stripped from the Kingsguard, forced into a marriage with someone he didn’t know or care for, the useless lump of gold attached to his right wrist; that had caused Jaime’s mouth to act without informing his brain and blurted out the lie about already being engaged.

“Really?” Tywin asked finally. “Who is she?”

Jaime cursed his own stupidity as his mind began to race. Marriage. A wife. Children. The life he had always wanted but simultaneously never wanted was in front of him. He knew what Tywin’s unspoken questions were; what family was she from, what could they (Tywin) claim from the match, how suitable a bride was she and of course, how dare Jaime do something so independent without consulting him. As he tried to think of an answer, a believable answer, only one person came to mind. She would kill him for this but he had no other option. He couldn’t tell the truth now.

“Her name is Brienne. Brienne of Tarth,” Jaime answered, sealing both of their fates.

“That beast you dragged back here with you?” Cersei asked with a scoff. “You can’t be serious.”

“That’s enough,” Tywin said and Cersei fell silent at one, glaring at Jaime suspiciously instead. “She is Selwyn Tarth’s daughter.”

It wasn’t a question and Jaime wasn’t stupid enough to think it was. “She is, she stands to inherit the Sapphire Isles.”

“The Evenstar is also a possible rallying point for the Stormlands when Stannis Baratheon dies. Tarth have declared neutrality in this war, despite her own actions. It also has good trade routes, a strong fleet of ships and a strong control in the Narrow Sea. Not the most attractive of wives, but there are compensations.” Tywin stated, pragmatic to a fault. Jaime wasn’t surprised that Tywin had already found out so much information about Brienne and her homeland. Of course, control in the Stormlands was a higher benefit to Tywin than what some nameless Frey girl could give.

Every single Lannister match had been planned to ensure they controlled it all. Cersei’s first marriage got them the throne and the crownlands. Joffrey and Cersei would keep the Tyrells and Highgarden in the fold. Tyrion’s marriage to Sansa would get them the North and help secure the Eyrie through her blood relation to Lysa and Robin Arryn. Riverrun and the Twins was theirs after the Red Wedding. Myrcella’s marriage would secure them Dorne and when Tommen was old enough, they would find a suitable match for him too. With Jaime’s supposed marriage to Brienne, it would gain Tywin the Stormlands (possibly) as well as a higher control over the Narrow Sea. All that would remain would be the Iron Islands. Tywin Lannister would win the Game of Thrones; regardless of who actually sat on the Iron Throne.

“I don’t care about any of that,” Jaime admitted truthfully, now that there was no turning back, it was as if all the thoughts he had been suppressing about Brienne had burst forward. “She protected me, she helped me when I lost my hand. She kept me alive when I was at my lowest point. Brienne is honourable and true and I know it sounds absurd but her heart is where her true beauty lies.”

‘Gods save us, he does actually love her,’ Tyrion mused before he smiled at Jaime. “If that’s the case, then I wish you both every happiness Jaime. It’ll be good to have some honour in this family for once.”

“That’s enough Tyrion,” Tywin warned without looking at him. “If you have promised yourself to the Tarth woman and as she is a suitable match, we will hold the wedding in three weeks; before the Royal wedding.”

Wedding! Oh gods he was an idiot. He had not thought this through. He had expected Tywin to dismiss his supposed promise to Brienne or be sceptical of his feelings. He should have put the pieces together when Tywin had actually seemed approving of Brienne, or rather what he could benefit by having Jaime marry her. This was bad, this was really, really bad.

Brienne was going to kill him.

“Thank you Father, I’m pleased we have your blessing.” Jaime lied, managing to fake a sincere enough smile.

“She will join us for dinner tonight, I want to meet her properly.” Tywin stated, looking almost… pleased that Jaime was not arguing the marriage.

“Of course,” Jaime replied, feeling the panic inside him build even more. As Tywin dismissed them, Cersei had stormed off immediately, poison in her eyes at the idea of the beast from Tarth managing to steal Jaime, her Jaime from her. Jaime and Tyrion however rounded the corner, walked down the passageway and once Jaime was confident that they were out of earshot, calmly hit his head off of a locked door.

“Stupid! That was so stupid! We are so fucked!” Jaime muttered as the penny dropped for Tyrion.

“You haven’t proposed to her, have you, you stupid bastard?” Tyrion asked and Jaime rounded on him.

“I didn’t mean to say that. I panicked and I didn’t think he would take it seriously. I do care for her and she is a close friend but no, I didn’t ask her to marry me. We don’t feel that way about each other.” Jaime replied, ignoring the almost hurt feeling at the reminder that Brienne didn’t actually love him.

“Well you did say it.” Tyrion said heavily. It had been said. It could not be unsaid. Tywin expected Jaime and Brienne to marry and soon the word would be travelling around the Red Keep that the Kingslayer was so in love with Brienne the Beauty that he had asked her to marry him; Kingsguard and tradition be damned. Once the court knew, all of Westeros would know and they would have to get married. Tywin expected it and no one defied Tywin Lannister or made him look a fool and lived to tell the tale.

Brienne was definitely going to kill him.

“Come on, we need to speak to Brienne and Sansa before Cersei or anyone else does.” Tyrion warned and they headed for the water gardens where they had left Brienne and Sansa when they had been summoned to Tywin’s office. Since Jaime and Brienne’s arrival in Kings Landing, the four of them had banded together into a group. A band of rejects and misfits, Tyrion had dubbed it. The Kingslayer, the demon monkey, Brienne the Beauty and the disgraced daughter of a traitor. What a group they made. Still it meant that they could be honest between the four of themselves and each had three others that they could trust without question. Something that would be needed now.

Sure enough, Brienne and Sansa had been sitting by one of the fountains in the water gardens and it was Sansa who noticed the grim expressions on their faces as they approached and felt a familiar sense of dread in her stomach. Something terrible had happened again. “What is it? What’s happened?”

“Not here,” Tyrion warned as he led them to the secluded waterside where Jaime, Brienne and Bronn practiced their sparring away from prying eyes. The sound of the waves crashing against the stones would ensure anything they said would be drowned out and not even one of Varys’ many little birds would overhear them.

“What’s happened?” Sansa asked again fearfully. If it was something that couldn’t be overheard then it was something terrible.

“Our father was speaking to the three of us about marriages. Ours, Cersei and Loras and he was discussing planning a match for Jaime when Jaime decided to inform our father that he had promised himself to someone else. A love match apparently.” Tyrion explained to Sansa and Brienne.

“I don’t understand,” Sansa said, puzzled as Brienne hit a realistation and her shoulders slumped.

“Jaime, you didn’t.” Brienne said as Jaime looked at her and turned scarlet. “Jaime what were you thinking?!”

“I didn’t mean to!” Jaime protested. “He was talking about removing me from the Kingsguard and about marriages and a suitable bride and I just thought of you and I panicked and it just came out.”

“You told your father that we were promised to wed. Is this some sort of sick joke?” Brienne asked; that had to be it. Another cruel joke against her because of course handsome, rich Jaime Lannister would want to marry her.

“It’s not a joke! He was talking about marriage and you were the only person I could think of who I would want to be married to. You’re kind and brave and strong and you think you’re hideous but your eyes are beautiful and your smile lights up your face and I know this sounds forced but it’s not. I know it’s a bad situation but I know how I feel about you. It’s not a joke. It’s never been a joke for me.” Jaime confessed, finally letting some of the thoughts and feelings that he thought he had hidden away through.

“Jaime, we need to be rational.” Brienne said after a tense moment of silence. “Your father expects us to wed, everyone will. How are we supposed to do this?”

“We will work it out,” Jaime reassured. “We will have to make it look believable.”

“But it’s unbelievable.” Brienne argued. This whole situation was unbelievable. Damn Jaime for his stupid lie, forcing them into this mess and damn his stupid confession as it was causing her to question the stupid thoughts and feelings that she had forced away since Harrenhall.

“You’re going to have to make it believable. Jaime, you saw how Cersei was; she doesn’t believe this for a moment and Father won’t believe it until the two of you are in the Sept and married. If he even suspects that any of this was pretend or false; then it will be unthinkable.” Tyrion warned them both as Sansa nervously spoke up.

“If anyone had heard what Jaime had said a few minutes ago, they would believe he was in love with Brienne. You could have had to hide how you felt when you were travelling, in order to keep each other safe. It could have been a habit that you’ve just found difficult to break until your father knew of the engagement and it became official.” Sansa suggested; everyone was hiding something here. This was where all the liars were, even the terrible ones like her.

“Exactly, you already are good friends and everyone has seen how the two of you talk and laugh with one another. It will be the more physically affectionate side that you will need to start showing; hand holding, linked arms, kisses, that sort of thing.” Tyrion suggested; if he was honest with himself, he had suspected since they had arrived in the capital that there was more than just friendship or companionship between Jaime and Brienne. Clearly both of them had repressed it just deep enough to hide it from one another but now it was time to force that into the open.

“That will be the difficult part,” Brienne stated and Tyrion dismissed it with a wave of his hand.

“It will take practice. If Sansa can act like she’s not repulsed by me, the two of you can fake affection for each other.” Tyrion quipped and Sansa smiled softly.

“I’m not repulsed by you.” Sansa protested and Tyrion smiled at her. Their marriage was a sham but they were just trying to make the most of a bad situation and survive as best they could.

The next few hours were spent coaching Jaime and Brienne on how to act. Part of the difficulty came from the fact that both of them felt like little children playacting. It all just seemed forced and wrong. The barrier of awkwardness between the two of them didn’t help matters. It was strange; they had shared a bath together and during their travels had seen the other wash, piss and shit without blinking an eye. But something as simple as walking with their arms linked seemed almost unbearably awkward. The sun was beginning to set by the time they felt comfortable enough to even try returning to the Red Keep for their evening meal. As they made their way back up the steps, Jaime took Brienne’s hand and squeezed it tightly.

“I’m sorry,” Jaime apologised sincerely. “I never meant for you to get caught up in this.”

“We just need to get through it,” Brienne said and smiled suddenly. “I just realised,”

“What?” Jaime asked.

“This is probably the longest you’ve gone without insulting me. Maybe we can make this work.”

“We will,” Jaime reassured, looking her in the eyes. “I do care deeply for you Brienne. I don’t know exactly what this is but I know how I feel is real. Even if this isn’t.”

“Thank you Jaime,” Brienne said as they wandered through the gardens and found a few people shooting them not to subtle looks. Time to make it seem real. Brienne lowered her head and kissed his cheek. “Kindness suits you.”

Jaime felt a wide, silly smile cross his face as he resisted the temptation to touch the spot where she had kissed him. As they walked through the gardens and into the Red Keep; it was clear that the news of their engagement had started to circle, as had different rumours about their travels; as courtiers and servants alike, shared looks and whispers as they passed.

“I heard she helped him escape Robb Stark singlehandedly.”

“Apparently he saved her from a wild bear.”

“She’s not the prettiest one but she’s definitely more than what the Kingslayer deserves.”

Jaime rubbed the back of her hand with his thumb as he considered that last remark. Brienne was definitely more than what he deserved. Jaime paused in his tracks and turned to face Brienne. In that instant, time seemed to stand still as he stroked her cheek before he leaned in to kiss her. He knew that she hadn’t kissed a man before but she didn’t hesitate in kissing him back. Believable. It had to be believable. They broke apart, smiled at one another before continuing towards their destination.

Just a kiss between two lovers. Nothing else.

As they entered the room, they found Tyrion and Sansa just taking their seats. It seemed Joffrey and Tommen had not been expected to attend this dinner. Tywin was stood beside the table, clearly waiting on their arrival. Cersei was already sat that the table, glaring daggers at both Jaime and Brienne who both tightened their grip on the other’s hand. Showtime.

“Father, may I introduce you to Lady Brienne of Tarth, my future bride.” Jaime said politely as Brienne smiled and bowed at Tywin.

“My lord, it’s an honour to meet you.” Brienne said politely as Tywin managed to hide any shock or surprise at Brienne bowing.

“It is a pleasure to meet you,” Tywin replied politely as they took their seats. As the meal was served, Jaime and Brienne managed to keep their hastily contrived story of how they apparently discovered how they felt and Jaime’s proposal. They managed to join in with Tyrion’s joking, deflect any sharp comments or criticism from Cersei and even Tywin seemed won over by Brienne. Although it was hard to tell, he also could have been constipated. As their second course was served, Jaime scowled at the portion of mutton on his plate and picked up his fork.

“Let me,” Brienne said quietly, taking his plate and cutting the meat up for him. As she did so, Jaime smiled softly at her, touched by the gesture. Brienne’s action and Jaime’s reaction hadn’t gone unnoticed by everyone else at the table who watched the tender action between the two with a growing realisation.

It may have started out as something pretend.

Only now, it seemed to have become very real.


End file.
